Month: September 2016

Last night’s Cards-Reds game was the most horrible game I have ever seen in person. The Cards lost to the Reds 15-2. In my last blog post, I compared the bad Cardinals to a beer league softball team, and sure enough, that’s the team that showed up to play last night. When I played co-ed softball, there was a 10 run mercy rule (the game ends after a team scores 10 runs), but unfortunately, that doesn’t apply to baseball. If it did, the game would have been over after the fourth inning.

My last blog post pleaded for Good Jaime to show up last night. Bad Jaime showed up instead. He only lasted one inning. The experiment to move Jaime back into the starting rotation failed miserably. I’m pretty sure that last night was the last time we’ll ever see Jaime pitching in a Cardinals uniform.

Michael Wacha relieved Jaime in the second inning, but he wasn’t much better. The next relief pitcher was Luke Weaver. After Luke, Dean Kiekhefer came in to pitch. Hazelbaker, a position player, was the last pitcher of the game. We left the game after the sixth inning. We just couldn’t take any more misery.

Yadi had a bad night too; he couldn’t throw out anyone trying to steal. The Cards did score a couple of runs, so at least it wasn’t a shutout. The highlight of the game was a Stephen Piscotty triple.

I always buy a scorecard and keep score when I go to a game, but last night, I stopped keeping score after the fourth inning. The Reds’ lineup batted 1 ½ times in the fourth inning, and there’s no room on a scorecard to score a second run through the lineup (if there is a way, someone please let me know how), so I just gave up keeping score all together.

My friend noticed how empty the stadium was last night even before the game. There was less than 40,000 attendees for the first time since 2013. The left upper deck was completely empty. In fact, the fans booed several times last night, and I’m ashamed to say I was one of them. I never thought that I would ever boo my beloved Cardinals, but last night I did. It appears the fans are getting tired of crappy baseball. I’m glad that I didn’t pay for my tickets to last night’s game; I would have been really angry if I had paid good money for that lousy outcome. It’s a shame that the last game I got to see at Busch Stadium this season was such a debacle. I missed going to Bible study for this? I would have gotten more out of Bible study that that game.

After last night’s loss, the Cards are 1 game back of the Giants for the second wild card spot. It’s still possible for the Cards to get to the wild card game, but even if by some stroke of luck they did, I really don’t think they’d win the game. I think the guys have finally run out of steam, and Yadi especially. Carson Kelly should have been called up earlier to give Yadi some days off, and Mike Matheny should have insisted that Yadi take more time off. Brayan Pena was supposed to be Yadi’s backup, but he got injured. Either the guys are totally exhausted, or there are some issues going on in the clubhouse that we are not yet privy to. It appears they have checked out for the season.

I think it’s time for us Cards fans to start mentally checking out of this season too. I predicted back in May that this wasn’t our year, and I was right. After the season is over, there will be some housecleaning occurring. I think there will be some players gone next season, and maybe some coaches and perhaps a manager too.

Hello, boys. It’s been a while since I’ve written to you. I write because the end of the season is almost upon us, and the remaining games of the season are at home. Unfortunately, you all have played much better on the road than at home, which puzzles me, and others, I’m sure, greatly.

As you also know, there is a tight race for the wild card right now and the Cards are still in the thick of it. If you all had won more games at home, the Cubs would not have clinched the division. I must move past that, however, and state that if you all want to be in the playoffs, you all must win some, if not all, of these final games.

It’s been a tough season to be a Cardinals fan. At times, you all play like the team we know and love. At other times, however, you all played like a beer softball league team, which was quite frustrating. You all have a chance in this final week of the regular season to finish strong and get momentum to get into the playoffs. Do you all want to be in the playoffs?

I will be at Busch Stadium tomorrow evening for what is probably my last game of the season (unless I am lucky enough to get other tickets somehow for this week), along with a friend of mine who has never been to a game in Busch Stadium III. Please give us a good game, guys, and better yet, a win. Jaime Garcia, please be Good Jaime tomorrow night and not Bad Jaime. Guys, please let us see more regular hits, although the home runs are nice.

Guys, let’s beat the Cubs tonight and come back home ready to finish the season strong. Hopefully, the next letter I write to you will be in the playoffs. It’s time to post this letter and watch the game.

Love always,

Diane

P.S.: Aledmys Diaz, my condolences and prayers to you on the loss of your childhood friend Jose Fernandez. It reminds me so much of Oscar Tavares.

The United Cardinals Bloggers’ project for September is to write about who we think are the Cards’ top 5 prospects. Three of these prospects are already in the show, and two of those three are due to injuries to players on the parent club.

Alex Reyes – Reyes is a great pitching talent. He has a 100 MPH fastball and great location. If Jaime Garcia gets released like he should be, Reyes will be a great addition to the rotation. But Alex needs to stay away from the reefer, mon.

Carson Kelly – Kelly is being touted as Yadier Molina’s successor. He has been brought up to the majors this season to be the third string catcher for the occasional start when Yadi needs a rest, like for yesterday’s game. The hope is the more Carson sees at the major league level, the more impetus it gives him to keep working hard so that he can come up to the show and stay there.

Luke Weaver – Weaver has been a great fill in pitcher, but I think he needs another year in the minors before he’s brought up to the majors on a permanent basis. He has good pitches, but he needs some confidence building. He has appeared nervous on the mound. He didn’t look so good in his start against Colorado yesterday.

Magneuris Sierra – Magneuris is speedy on the base paths and on the field. he doesn’t have home run power, but should have good run production. He still needs a couple of years in the minors for some seasoning. He will be a good centerfielder a couple of years down the line.

Harrison Bader – Harrison zoomed through the minor league system, and is now in Memphis. Harrison can play all three outfield positions; however, he is an average hitter. Harrison will compete with Magneuris for the centerfield position in a couple of years.

This sure has been a crazy season for the Cards. We are now in the last 2 weeks of the regular season and if things keep going well, the Cards should earn one of the wild card play-in slots. The Cards won 4 games in a row, but given the way this season has gone, I don’t know whether to start getting excited or not. Just when I think the Cards are on a roll, a bad game happens and they break my heart all over again. In addition, every time the Cards play a game that would put them 10 games over .500, they lose, like yesterday. It’s like they just can’t get over that hump. The emotions of Cards fans are like this song by the Foundations from 1968:

Why do you build me up (build me up), buttercup baby, just to let me down (let me down),

And mess me around and then worse of all (worse of all),

You never call, baby, like you say you will (say you will),

But I love you still.

I need you (I need you) more than anyone, darling, you know that I have from the start,

So build me up, buttercup, don’t break my heart.

Here’s the video for your viewing and listening pleasure – you can thank me or curse me for the earworm later:

Sorry I haven’t written much later. I haven’t had a lot to say in long form. I’ve been doing a lot of talking on Twitter lately, so follow me on there if you miss what I have to say. If things pick up, I’ll hopefully be posting more. Thanks for reading and see you next time!